SAN ANTONIO — Dallas Madison paved its road to a sixth state title in the winter.
The boys basketball program beat Orangefield 70-59 in the 3A Division I championship game Friday at the Alamodome, adding to the legacy of one of the most successful programs in Texas high school basketball.
Madison’s defense overwhelmed Orangefield, forcing 28 turnovers and holding the team to just 35.6% shooting from the floor. Madison junior Josiah Cobb scored a team-high 20 points and was named the game’s MVP.
“It was just about getting the win and continuing the culture here in Madison,” Cobb said. “I know it’s bigger than me.”
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Even during the fourth period, as Orangefield narrowed down a once 19-point lead to 10, Madison never wavered.
Head coach Gerald Smith credited his team’s nondistrict gauntlet as the primary reason for their composure in seeing things out to the end.
“It was a hard selling point to them because they’re seeing the losses and they’re like, ‘Man, coach, we’re doing everything you’re telling us to do and losing,’” Smith said. “I was trying to explain to them that it’s to prepare us for the next wave.
“I know sometimes I got on their nerves. It’s just part of it, but that schedule really prepared us for where we are right now.”
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Games against Little Elm, Cedar Hill and schools from Utah (Bingham) and California (Campbell Hall) had Madison staring at just five wins before district play. The team rattled off a 20-0 run after its last loss, culminating in Friday’s championship.
“We had a reality check on some things, because we did a lot of winning in fall ball, and then we came back and played the regular season,” Smith said. “We’d win one, lose two, but if you added those games up, we lost by five or six points.”
Smith credits the team’s defensive press disrupting Orangefield’s offense. Leading scorer Jaden Scales, who averaged over 20 points per game, was held to 13 points. Madison’s Darius Hooks, Aiden Durr and Jamirion Rice finished with a combined 11 steals.
“I was counting how many times did [Orangefield] pass the ball to the right,” Smith said. “What is the first thing when they get into transition? Do they want to walk the ball up?
“It’s kind of it’s unreal. If you would have told me that we’d be in the state championship right now, I would honestly have been like, ‘I’m glad you feel that way, but it’s a process.’”
Durr finished with 15 points, and Demondre Jones added 10.
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